We're down to three undefeated teams in the nation after sim-controlled Thomas lost on the road last night.

Last Night#23 Ozarks 58 #20 Southwestern 66
This was a very evenly matched game with the only major difference in stats was the 2-1 margin in free throw attempts that Southwestern held. Considering Ozarks only missed one of their sixteen free throws, getting more opportunities would've made a world of difference. As it was, the Pirates of Southwestern were able to hold on to the lead throughout the second half and finished off a satisfying 8 point win. Arrrrggghhh. With the win, Southwestern and hoopcoach stay just one game in the loss column off the division lead and continue their slow climb up the rankings. Ozarks and spike on the other hand slide a few spots down the rankings.

Sim blowout watch: Swarthmore covered the huge spread at home by losing to #3 Ursinus 49-80 and Wisconsin Whitewater did the same at #16 Wisconsin Oshkosh 49-79.

ITaLRbHAGotN: It was a thriller in the SUNY last night as US Coast Guard looked set to "coast" to an easy victory when they led at the break by 13 points. However, SUNY Cortland kept chipping away and finally tied the game at 86 with just under three minutes to go. The two teams traded baskets and then traded misses in the last forty seconds so we went to overtime tied at 93. Seems like Cortland ran out of gas in the extra session as they couldn't keep up the frantic scoring pace and the Coast Guard Bears escaped with a 110-100 upset win. Wait, Bears? Your school is full of cadets for the Coast Guard and you're the Bears? I know polar bears are great swimmers, but couldn't you pick something a little more keeping with the theme of the school? Weird. Anyway, the Red Dragons of Cortland are now tied with Brockport atop the division, and those two teams meet in the last game of the season. Red Dragons, now there's a cool mascot.

GotN#1 Hardin-Simmons (21-1)(sublightd) at Austin (17-6)(ricosuave21)
I've been wanting to feature on of our two top ranked teams and H-S is first up as they look to continue their undefeated roll through the American Southwest conference. They got past Austin at home in the first game a few days ago and now go on the road to try for the season sweep. Austin looks to be in good position for the post-season but the upset here would give them a nice boost in seeding. Regardless of what happens on the court, I'm already declaring Austin the winner of mascot battle since the Austin Kangaroos is way more awesome than the Hardin-Simmons Cowboys. Kangaroos! In Texas! Love it.

Sim blowout watch: Two spreads are in the 70's: Sul Ross State is getting 75 points hosting #6 Texas Lutheran and Rutgers Camden is getting 72 points at #13 Ramapo.

ITaLRbHAGotNGrove City (10-13)(Sim AI) at Wooster (15-7)(pseudochamp)
Ok, so this one didn't take too much research but I've been looking forward to this one for a while. The Fighting Scots of Wooster fell in a heartbreaker in OT earlier in the season at the Grove and it started a downward spiral of despair and self-loathing. Now Wooster seems to have righted the ship and a win here would certainly be a sweet dose of revenge. I'd rather not think about what a loss would mean, how's that for pressure?

Last Night#1 Hardin-Simmons 78 Austin 61
After a close first half and five minutes into the second half, the Austin Kangaroos jumped out to an 8 point lead to get the home fans really hopping and they were starting to think they'd have a huge upset win secured in their pouches. Unfortunately for them, the top ranked team in the nation wasn't going out like that and started a relentless comeback that resulted in the visitors outscoring their hosts 41-16 the rest of the way. With the road victory, Hardin-Simmons and sublightd maintain their top ranking and their undefeated conference record as they now look forward to a battle with also-perfect-in-conference Texas Lutheran in a couple days. Austin and ricosuave will look to bounce back with a solid showing in the conference tourney.

Also considered: #3 Trinity got the road win over #23 Rhodes 72-61, #2 Piedmont did the same over Palm Beach Atlantic 59-49, #6 Johnson and Wales shot S. Vermont out of the gym 93-63, and Millsaps got a couple clutch baskets down the stretch to upset #18 Emory 58-54.

Sim blowout watch: Sul Ross State covered with 20+ points to spare against #8 Texas Lutheran 52-104 and Rutgers Camden did even better in their loss to #14 Ramapo 49-90.

GotN#6 Johnson and Wales (20-3)(spasticity) at #12 Rivier (19-6)(jack_duck)
It's time for another GNE battle and this time it's a match up of ranked division leaders. J-Dub has a two game lead in their division but they finish with three tough games so there's work left to do. This is the last regular season game for Rivier and they're currently tied in the loss column for the division lead, a win here would guarantee them at least a tie. It's the Wildcats/Spider Monkeys vs the Raiders, should be a good one.

Also considered: #23 Rhodes at #25 Southwestern and #3 Trinity at Millsaps

Sim blowout watch: Lower spreads today: McDaniel is getting 42 points at #4 Ursinus while Rowan is a 40 point home dog against #14 Ramapo.

ITaLRbHAGotN#10 Lynchburg (21-2)(googs04) at Randolph-Macon (12-11)(caddojim)
The Fighting Hornets of Lynchburg have been tearing up the Old Dominion conference and are three wins away from a perfect conference record. This road trip to Randolph-Macon to take on the Yellow Jackets is the most challenging of the three remaining games. That's right, it's flying stinging insect against flying stinging insect! The arena is going to be buzzing!

Posted by pseudochamp on 7/28/2013 10:32:00 AM (view original):I just looked at the pbp for those two games. No, that did not look fun. At least you didn't lose on a buzzer beater last night, right? Progress? (sorry, I'll shut up)

Haha, no the progress is learning what mistakes I made when I recruited my current junior class which is about half my team (not to mention the sophmores, as well as the lack of recruiting of the freshman). I know what I did wrong when recruiting them, and will start to rebuild the type of team I want in this next recruitment period.

Oh, can I be in the Not-Game of the Night section that doesn't exist? :p

Last Night#8 Johnson and Wales 60 #11 Rivier 64
J&W had an excellent first half where they led the home team by as much as 17 points, going into the break with a solid 8 point advantage. However, Rivier was able to come back and take the lead halfway through the second and then never trailed again. Things got very close in the last two minutes with Rivier only being up by 1 point, but back-to-back traveling calls in the last minute on J&W players was the fatal mistake that allowed Rivier to escape. With the win Rivier and jack_duck clinched at least a tie in the division and climbed to just outside the top ten. J&W and spasticity now have a one game lead in their division with two games to play.

Sim blowout watch: McDaniel got fairly close but still lost to Ursinus 70-88 and Rowan also covered against #14 Ramapo 45-80.

ITaLRbHAGotN: #10 Lynchburg took the lead just before halftime and held on to the lead the rest of the way for a 59-49 victory over Randolph-Macon. Lynchburg and googs stay undefeated in conference play and moved up into the rankings top ten. Randolph-Macon and caddojim is now tied for their division lead but they'll lose the tie-breaker so they need some help to finish in first.

GotN#1 Hardin-Simmons (22-1)(sublightd) at #7 Texas Lutheran (22-2)(blapo21)
There are several very good games tonight featuring key late-season conference matchups, but this American Southwest battle is the headliner. Both teams have been ranked in the top ten most of the season, both are at 14-0 in conference and easily leading their divisions, and finally, both teams are considered serious contenders for final four runs. sublightd has a big lead in the series between these two and his team is favored by 1 point on the road tonight, should be a great one.

Also considered: #2 Trinity at #16 Emory in a huge battle of University conference division leaders and #13 Calvin at Eureka in yet another game tonight between perfect-in-conference division leaders, this time in the Michigan conference.

Sim blowout watch: Johns Hopkins is a 73 point road dog at #4 Ursinus and Roanoke is getting 59 points on the road at #10 Lynchburg.

ITaLRbHAGotNJohn Jay (19-5)(Sim AI) at Staten Island (15-9)(scuba1253)
That's right, I found ANOTHER cross-divisional showdown of division leaders, this time in the CUNY conference. Both teams have clinched their division titles so this one is for bragging rights and momentum going into the post-season as the Bloodhounds visit the Dolphins.

Posted by pseudochamp on 7/28/2013 10:32:00 AM (view original):I just looked at the pbp for those two games. No, that did not look fun. At least you didn't lose on a buzzer beater last night, right? Progress? (sorry, I'll shut up)

Haha, no the progress is learning what mistakes I made when I recruited my current junior class which is about half my team (not to mention the sophmores, as well as the lack of recruiting of the freshman). I know what I did wrong when recruiting them, and will start to rebuild the type of team I want in this next recruitment period.

Oh, can I be in the Not-Game of the Night section that doesn't exist? :p

I would be happy to help in recruiting if you have questions. Next go around I only have one open spot, so I'll probably be a little bit in withdraw itching to do more! Plus, we aren't really in the same area (I avoid that whole Penn/East Coast area usually)

Last Night#1 Hardin-Simmons 89 #7 Texas Lutheran 90
This one turned out to be as good as advertised, an exciting back-and-forth affair the whole way. Both teams held leads in the first half but the largest was only 6 points with the visitors going into the break with a slim 4 point lead. H-S extended the lead in the second and for a while looked like they were going to coast to a clutch road victory, but Texas Lutheran wouldn't go away. The home team kept fighting and finally took their first lead of the second half with a basket to go up 79-78 with just under four minutes left. The teams traded points until H-S got a defensive rebound on a missed free throw, down 2 points with only sixteen seconds on the clock. Moments later the home crowd exploded when H-S forward Joseph Koss went up for a monster dunk to tie the game only to be rejected by Texas Lutheran's Keith Flor. Texas Lutheran was immediately fouled and were fortunate to make both free throws since H-S sunk a 3pt shot as time expired to make the final margin just 1 point. What a game and what a way for the best record in the ASC to be decided. Texas Lutheran and blapo stay undefeated in conference play but they have to be wondering what more it takes to move up from the #7 ranking. Hardin-Simmons and sublightd suffer their second loss on the season but like their opponents the result didn't affect their ranking. I'm sure both these teams are looking forward to a possible rematch in the conference tourney.

Also considered: It was also a thriller over in the University conference where #15 Emory made two free throws with five seconds on the clock and then got a steal to seal the 59-58 victory over #3 Trinity. In the Michigan conference, #24 Eureka held on for a 81-77 win over #17 Calvin to win their battle of undefeated-in-conference division leaders.

ITaLRbHAGotN: Unlike the other cross-divisional battles featured last night, this one wasn't exactly a thriller. John Jay cruised to a statement road victory over Staten Island 78-56. Don't mess with the Bloodhounds.

GotNEmmanuel (18-7)(bananajacobs) at #8 Johnson and Wales (20-5)(spasticity)
We finish off the regular season with a GNE battle where the winner takes first place in the east division. Johnson and Wales has a one game lead on the Saints of Emmanuel but a win tonight would give Emmanuel the season sweep and the tie-breaker edge. spasticity holds a 32-22 lead in the head-to-head series between these two and his beloved Spikermonkeys are favored by just 3 points at home in this one.

Sim blowout watch: California Santa Cruz is getting a big 71 points at home against #11 Colorado while Wisconsin Whitewater is a 68 point road dog at #6 Wisconsin Superior and Widener is about the same, getting 63 points at #5 Susquehanna.

ITaLRbHAGotNUMass Dartmouth (19-6)(pureh21) at Plymouth St. (24-1)(rdm003)
Last day of the regular season and we take a visit to the Little East conference. Look at it, it's so little. Adorable. Anyway, Plymouth St. will attempt to finish off a perfect 16-0 conference run at home tonight as they host UMass Dartmouth, whose only conference loss came earlier to this very Plymouth St. team. It's a battle between Corsairs and Panthers resulting in a season split or sweep, and the odd-makers have it as an even pick.

The regular season completed last night and we finished with three undefeated teams: Ursinus, Hamline, and St. Mary's Maryland, congrats to those three. Try not to be too depressed, but it's the last GotN recap for the season...

Last NightEmmanuel 61 #8 Johnson and Wales 69
The Spidermonkeys of J&W had the lead most of the second half and comfortably held on for a division-clinching victory at home. Johnson and Wales and spasticity were led by Roosevelt Lewis and his 25 points. With the victory they tie for best record in the GNE and win their division. Emmanuel and bananajacobs have to settle for second place in the division and the other conference tourney bye.

Also considered: #18 Willamette had no trouble with Chapman, winning 73-61, #2 Piedmont handled Oglethorpe 75-62, and I think #12 Wittenberg beat Wooster but I can't seem to locate the final score. I'm 100% positive that it was a really close game and a completely respectable loss for Wooster. Knowing Wittenberg, they probably won on a lucky last second shot from half court or something and Wooster totally deserved to win. Pretty typical.

ITaLRbHAGotN: UMass Dartmouth got a huge road victory last night over Plymouth St. 70-63 to deal the Panther their first conference loss of the season. Dartmouth and pureh had four players in double figures and held Plymouth to a depressing 1 of 12 from 3pt land. Plymouth ST. and rdm can take solace in the fact that they held the tie-breaker so they still got the #1 seed in the conference tourney.

So that wraps it up for the daily GotN writeups, I hope everyone enjoyed them. I'll try to get a quick recap of conference winners up later this afternoon and I'll probably post some sort of recap each day during the conference tourneys.

Flor is an absolute beast, and Lutheran is the exact type team I don't want to play against. They are incredibly solid in the post, offensively and defensively. It was a heck of a game. Center Hershel Lord (he of the 7 perimeter rating) nailing a 3 was just hilarious too. We're expecting big things in the ASC from some teams in the postseason.

Posted by mroylanc on 8/1/2013 1:44:00 PM (view original):Thanks for keeping up with the daily write-ups. I'm sure it takes a lot of work but I look forward to reading it every single day. And I know a lot of others do to.

...and I think #12 Wittenberg beat Wooster but I can't seem to locate the final score. I'm 100% positive that it was a really close game and a completely respectable loss for Wooster. Knowing Wittenberg, they probably won on a lucky last second shot from half court or something and Wooster totally deserved to win. Pretty typical.

We probably cheated, which I'm convinced it's the only way you can win at D3 while playing zone.

ASC -- No. 6 Texas Lutheran (blapo21) ran the table after an exciting late-season contest against Hardin-Simmons. That's 13 consecutive banners and the third 16-0 in the last five seasons. Capital -- No. 24 St. Mary's of Maryland (tardhesticle) runs the table to score his third straight banner. St. Mary's is a perfect 26-0, but with a projection report ranking of just 51, might have to win three more to dance. Cenntennial -- No. 4 ursinus (barjaz) won the annual battle with Dickinson to go 16-0. Six consecutive undefeated conference campaigns. CUNY -- John Jay (Sim) went 15-1 and won by two games. They've won three of the last season banners. CCIW -- No. 21 Northland (raucous) swept the table for the first time in school history. Coast -- Wentworth (chewchad) won all 16 league games as Wentworth extends its streak of banners to four decades. Commonwealth -- No 5 Susquehanna (zeuspole) climbs back atop the standings after a two year hiatus. His last three titles have all come via 16-0 runs. Empire -- Vassar (theriddler) finishes 15-1 for a three-game margin of superiority. That's good, but also the first time in three seasons they've lost a league game. Freedom -- Freedom might be another word for nothing left to lose, but nobody really wanted to win either. Thus, Carnegie Mellon (Sim) goes 12-4 for the best record. First banner in eight seasons.GNE -- No. 11 Rivier (jack_duck) tied No. 8 Johnson and Wales at 13-3, but won the head-to-head battle to get bragging rights. Intersting stat -- Rivier has had one of the top 10 SOS ratings each season back to Season 50. Heartland -- Sims Manchester and Transylvania tied at 12-4. Manchester won the head-to-head for its first banner in nine seasons. Iowa -- No. 20 Buena Vista (westcoast22) swept the league schedule for the third straight year and finishing two games clear of the field. Little East -- Plymouth St. (rdm003) and UMass, Darmouth (pureh21) tie at 15-1, three games better than anyone else. They split their games, but UMass won on point differential in those two meetings. Back-to-back banners for the school.Michigan -- No. 23 Eureka (usjgt) wins all 16 conference games. That's back-to-back sweeps of the MIAA. Midwest -- Beloit (Sim) was 15-1, one game better than pursuer Lawrence. Third title in five years for the school that hasn't been human coached in 17 seasons.Minnesota -- No. 9 Hamline (foofighter13) finishes the regular season undefeated at 26-0. You have to go back to Season 10 to find the last 16-0 league performance for the school. NESCAC -- No. 19 Tufts (zmark513) ran the conference table. Three consecutive perfect seasons for the school. New Jersey -- No. 15 Ramapo (pgj930) tied with simmed William Patterson, but won the head-to-head to take the conference bragging rights for the human race. N. Atlantic -- Thomas (Sim) won the head-to-head with Castleton to win the league with a 15-1 mark. Five straight banners. NCAC -- No. 12 Wittenberg (darnoc29099) went 15-1 and won by three games as they look to extend on an impressive run of NT appearances. Northwest -- No. 25 George Fox (Sim) ran the table in the Northwest. Back-to-back titles and the fourth in six seasons. Ohio -- John Carroll (whit6r) wins 'em all for a three-game cushion over the field. Back-to-back undefeated league campaigns for the school.ODAC -- No. 10 Lynchburg (googs04) buries the competition by five games in his first season at the helm.Penn -- Babson (Sim) goes 15-1, winning the league by three games. Skyline -- U.S. Merchant Marines (lynchmob1414) scores his fifth undefeated season in six years to score the conference title. So. Cal. -- No. 13 Colorado (bdpoor) won all 16 league games. That's three straight banners for Colorado.
St. Louis -- Webster (mschulte24) swept the conference schedule. That's nothing new as the last three seasons also ended this way. SUNY -- SUNY Cortland (cuck) scored a one-game win over Brockport and SUNY Fredonia, taking league honors at 13-3. Fourth banner in a row for Cortland. University -- Defending national champion, No. 14 Emory (phalla) goes 13-3 to win by a game, which is more than he could say last year on his way to the championship. Upstate -- Rensselaer Poly (Sim) was 15-1, three games better than anyone else. After a one-year hiatus, RPI is back on top of the Upstate. USA South -- No. 2 Piedmont (bunkerbuster) won them all, which isn't an easy task in this league, at least for schools not named Greensboro. In fact, this is the first 16-0 in school history. Wisconsin -- No. 17 Wisconsin, Oshkosh (irishdomer) won the head-to-head against Wisconsin, Superior to score bragging rights between the 15-1 league teams.

Posted by pseudochamp on 8/1/2013 10:26:00 PM (view original):And by "I'll try to get a quick recap of conference winners up later this afternoon..." I meant that rednu will definitely get a recap of conference winners up later today.

Thanks red!

LOL -- totally didn't see that you'd written that pseudochamp. It just dawned on me as I was setting my team for tonight's game that it was the end of the regular season and I just did what I typically do at season's end. Please tell me you saw that I'd posted all that before you'd spent an hour working on and almost finishng a write-up.